Using floral strips to enhance beneficial insect populations on Manitoba rotational farm land

Insects provide many ecological functions that support agricultural production, but insect populations are often lower in these areas. Thus, testing different methods for supporting insect populations is important for sustainable agricultural production. We installed thirteen floral strips in Manitoba, Canada in 2019 and then monitored beneficial insect abundances on field edges and within fields up to 3 years after establishment. Ground beetle capture rates and Shannon diversity were higher within strips initially but declined to similar levels as control sites over time. Bees from blue vane traps and net transects were most abundant in the strips. However, both syrphid abundance and diversity was significantly higher in the control treatment. Strips significantly increased abundances of pollinators within adjacent blooming canola fields, as both actively netted bees and syrphids were more abundant within the strip than the On-Site Control (OSC) treatments regardless of distance within the fields. Ground beetles capture rates were more abundant within the strip than the OSC edges, but distances within the field were similar. Floral strips significantly increased nesting rates and offspring provisioning of Megachile on field edges. Additionally, strip sites contained the highest pollen species richness, with 30% of utilized pollen species likely collected from the strip itself. We found that floral strips increase capture rates of multiple beneficial insect groups and support pollen foraging and offspring provisioning of Megachile. These results support the use of floral strips in the prairie region of Canada for agricultural production and insect conservation.